Appear, think, believe
by crea-sei
Summary: /!\ V･ᴥ･V Work In Progress. /!\ Yuugi meets someone from another world – who knows everything about him – and inadvertently becomes his only friend; and, after solving his precious puzzle, gets possessed by an old Pharaoh. (Not that he realizes any of it, anyway.) [ world-drop/reincarnation/soul-transfer!OC ]
1. one – god puzzle

Hello, crea-sei here. Nice to meet you.

I hope you'll like this—even though I don't know if anyone will ever read this... meh.

Notes and precisions are at the bottom.

* * *

 **appear, think, believe  
** { _chapter one : god puzzle_ }

* * *

Yuugi stared at the door, willing it to open and finally let him out.

Absentmindedly, he rubbed at his wrists, the red bruises still openly glaring at him. It was still hurting him, but the rough treatment he had received was nothing compared to the many times he had been bullied before—it usually was far worse than just some kicks to the face and a strong grip on his wrists.

He snapped out of his own thoughts, and tried to open the door open; no such luck, it was still locked, he couldn't get out.

He sighed, and leaned back on the wall.

He was feeling sick, and claustrophobia was quickly rising up his head, threatening him to just break down and make him burst into tears of panic. But he knew he couldn't let it get to him—he couldn't give up, not now at least. What if they came back and saw him in his weakest state? (Though, he was sure they already had seen him like that.)

Yuugi screwed his eyes shut, forcing his thoughts to stop here. He could feel his eyes beginning to tear up.

He sniffed, his lips almost quivering. No, no, no, no, no… He had promised that he wouldn't cry. That's right, he couldn't cry; never again. He would never be weak again.

The door rattled.

Yuugi gasped in surprise and pressed himself flat against the wall. He barely refrained from letting out a whimper.

He couldn't let anyone see him like this, and he was sure that people would force the door open if they heard him. The ones who had locked him in this had said that they would get him out in the morning, and that if he wasn't there anymore when they came back, they would beat him up again, but worse than before.

He couldn't let that happen, his grandpa would notice then, and he didn't want that (it was worse than just spending the night in a closet)—so Yuugi bit his lower lip hard, drawing blood in the process.

The door rattled again, this time more violently, before everything froze again.

Footsteps drew away a bit, and Yuugi almost sighed in relief, but just as he was about to, they came closer again, this time more rapid.

The door rattled suddenly, as if someone had kicked it. It rattled again and again, until the handle broke.

Yuugi flinched and bit his lip harder, instinctively shielding behind his arms.

Light flooded the little room – if it could be called a room – and he closed his eyes.

He was doomed, he knew it, they would beat him up tomorrow and then grandpa would find out and then and then… Yuugi didn't want to find out what would happen. His hands curled into fists, his nails drawing blood from the tender flesh.

"Hey," the person said.

He continued to hide his face; he didn't want to see this.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

He bit his lip harder – was that even possible? – and didn't answer.

The stranger seemed to take this in stride, and there was a moment of silence in which he considered just dashing under the person's arms in hope of getting away; he didn't do it, if only because he knew he was to slow to success.

"Oh, are you afraid? Don't worry, I won't hurt you." The voice was gradually becoming softer, but it was still definitely masculine.

Yuugi unwillingly let out a whimper—he swore it escaped his lips without his consent. He tried to flatten himself more against the wall, he was unsuccessful, he was already as close to it as he could possibly be.

"Ah…" the voice deflated. "Can you open your eyes? Is the light bothering you, or is it something else? Please answer me."

Yuugi hesitated, but finally shook his head. He carefully opened his eyes, and blinked at the person in front of him. He recognized him; it was Dogma—he refused to say his last name, and the professors, for an unknown reason, never revealed it either.

Dogma was quite famous around the school, it wasn't only because of his looks – he had blond hair and blue eyes, quite an oddity in Japan – but also because he was a fighter; not really a delinquent, because even though there were rumors about it, no one had any evidence of it.

Dogma was also famous for being cold to everyone.

And yet… and yet, hadn't he just tried to calm him down? Yuugi couldn't really understand, what was going on?

"Oh, you finally opened your eyes." Dogma's face wasn't as hard as it seemed to be in broad daylight. Right now, he just looked like he was trying to lure a kitten to his welcoming arms – or at least that's what it looked like to Yuugi's eyes. "You're… Yuugi Mutou, right? Are you feeling alright? I don't really mean to be offensive… but you look like crap."

He flinched, and looked down, biting his lips in worry (he was doing this way too much).

"Where is it hurting? I know the basics, so I can help you." Dogma took a few steps backward, letting him walk out of the broom closet, even as his limbs were still shaking from the fright he just had.

Dogma led him to an empty classroom, holding his hand gently, he treated him like he was a wounded animal—to be honest, he didn't mind it as much as he would have liked to.

He made him sit on a desk, disappearing for a few minutes and coming back with a first-aid kit. As surprising as it was to Yuugi, he managed to patch him up really quickly (though, he guessed that with all the fights Dogma got into, he was used to it).

In no time, Yuugi was ready to go home.

"There you go," Dogma patted his shoulder – again he was so gentle, so kind, that it made Yuugi tear up before he could stop himself. "Wah— what's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Dogma flailed his arms around, trying to get a better look at his face, but Yuugi kept his head down.

He didn't want to be seen crying.

"S-sorry…" he stuttered, still keeping his head down.

Dogma froze for a second, and crouched to look at his face.

Yuugi didn't dare look at him in the eyes. "I-it's just that…" He hid his face behind his hands.

Dogma sighed, and stood up again—Yuugi's heart almost stopped; would he leave him alone now? But Dogma just wrapped his hands around Yuugi, placing his head near Yuugi's ear. Dogma calmly rubbed his back, whispering soft nothings against Yuugi's ear.

Yuugi couldn't believe it.

Except for grandpa (and maybe Anzu), no one had ever cared for him like that, no one had hugged him when he was crying, no one had comforted him when he was sad; hell, no one had patched him up like that—so Yuugi hid his face in the crook of Dogma's neck, wrapped his arms around Dogma's chest, and let his tears flow.

* * *

The chair in front of him screeched against the floor, but he paid it no mind, concentrating on his treasure. He could feel someone's eyes on him, and after a few seconds, it was too much to ignore. Yuugi looked up, and froze as he saw piercing blue eyes watching him. "D-Dogma…?" he stuttered, blushing under the heaviness of his gaze.

His nervousness disappeared as Dogma's lips quirked up in a grin.

"Hey Yuugi, what are you doing?" At this, he sent a questioning look at the puzzle. "Is it… some kind of puzzle?" He let his chin fall on his palm as he tilted his head at Yuugi.

"A-ah, yes it is." He blinked and looked down a little, worried Dogma would make fun of him, but looked up again when said teen only chuckled. "What is it?"

Dogma only chuckled harder, and finally, he moved to touch the creasing in between Yuugi's eyebrows. Yuugi hadn't even realized he was frowning until now.

"What are you getting all nervous about? I'm not going to eat you whole or something, you know." His grin brightened, though Yuugi managed to sense nervousness from him. "We're friends, right?"

Yuugi froze, and looked with wide eyes at Dogma.

 _Friends?_ Yuugi friends with _Dogma_ , of all people?

The one who was known for being violent and cold with everyone, was asking him if they were friends…? This was completely unrealistic. But, Dogma had never done anything to Yuugi; instead, he had helped him, had bandaged his wounds, had held him in his weakest moments and had walked him home. All the while, he had been gentle, understanding, and even now, he was openly smiling at him.

How could Yuugi possibly refuse this?

"Y-yeah," he breathed out, after a minute of tense silence.

Immediately, Dogma's shoulders sagged with relief, and his grin morphed into a full-out smile.

For an unknown reason, Yuugi found himself smiling back.

"Sorry," he continued, eyes dropping on his puzzle, "it just feels a little…" He hesitated for the right word, and when he didn't manage to find it, smiled sheepishly at his newly-made friend—and how surreal that felt. His first friend in, what, ten years? His whole life? Yuugi wouldn't know; but he didn't really care.

Dogma was his friend right now, and that was all that mattered.

"I see." And it truly looked like Dogma understood. His lips were still quirked up in a peaceful smile. He closed his eyes, and dropped his head in his palm again. "So, how far did you get with this?" He opened his right eye – the other one staying closed – and halfheartedly gestured to the golden puzzle still in Yuugi's hands. He seemed to study it for a moment, before frowning. "Seems pretty complicated to me."

Yuugi nodded. "It is. I've been trying to solve it for eight years already, and, as you can see, I didn't manage to do it." He sighed, fingers trailing against the surface of his treasure. "Ah," he brightened up, and smiled at Dogma – who instinctively smiled back, "but it's my treasure. It's a memento from my grandfather."

Dogma blinked – if it could be called a blink when only one eye was open – and suddenly looked alarmed. "Memento? Is your grandfather… dead?" he seemed to hesitate on the last word, and the frown came back on his face.

Yuugi shook his head hurriedly.

"N-no!" He stopped flailing, and scratched the back of his head sheepishly, giving a small laugh. "I meant that it will be… one day," he finished lamely. His hands immediately found their ways back to the puzzle, and he continued to move it around. "He told me that whoever would be able to solve it would get a wish…" Yuugi trailed off, and blushed once he realized how childish that sounded.

Dogma leaned in, eye twinkling in excitement. "Really? Like a genius with the three wishes?"

Yuugi nodded; Dogma let out a small laugh.

"Then, I hope you will be the one to solve it. If someone with bad intentions get their hands on it, it will be troublesome. You know, those famous bad guys that want chaos just because they _are_ bad guys." Seeing Yuugi's lost look, he frowned – it was more of a pout than anything – and looked away. "Never mind."

"You… think this is real?" Yuugi asked after a moment. How strange it was, that Dogma wasn't making fun of him because he trusted those kinds of legends and fairy tales. "You're not… going to make fun of me?"

Dogma looked at him like he didn't understand what he meant. "Why would I?" He frowned a little, before realization dawned on his features. "Oh, because people think it's fake and childish?" He gave a short laugh. "To be honest, I don't really think they are real – for example, I never ever thought fairies were real: that's pure bullshit to me – but I respect your belief—just like I respect other people's religions. Personally, I don't think there is any god." He grinned at Yuugi, his eye twinkling once again. "So, what's your wish? Oh, don't tell me it's like those wishes you make on falling stars!"

Yuugi laughed, his friend's excitement rubbing off on him. "I don't think it is the same." In a calmer voice, he said: "I don't really know what I'm wishing for anymore. Before I met you…" he hesitated, but Dogma's questioning tilt of the head spurred him on. "Before I met you, I wished for friends," he admitted, looking down to avoid seeing Dogma's reaction.

"Oh really?" Dogma laughed – he seemed to do that a lot. "Well, it was my wish too. You're my first friend, Yuugi." There was some sort of fondness in his voice; almost like he was trying to comfort Yuugi. Maybe he really was trying to comfort him; even if it wasn't his goal, he managed to do it.

Yuugi let his lips curl up, returning Dogma's bright smile.

* * *

"Hey, Yuugi, wanna play basketball with us?" one of the student asked. If Yuugi remembered well, his name was Yamamoto Rei, and was one of the few that actually talked to Yuugi.

He shook his head. "No, thanks. The team I'll join will just lose anyway." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. He didn't want to be a burden.

Yamamoto shrugged and walked away.

Yuugi looked up when a shadow fell over his desk.

Dogma was above him, shifting on his feet, he looked nervous. "Hey Yuugi," he greeted, grinning at him. "I'm sorry, but I have to go to the infirmary right now."

Yuugi nodded silently, and offered a small smile when Dogma's nervous frown increased.

"I'll be back soon, 'kay?" He flashed a grin, and this time it looked more carefree.

Yuugi smiled again.

He looked back at his puzzle, and looked up again when he noticed the deafening silence in the room. He was alone in the classroom. He bit back a sigh and continued to work on his puzzle.

Two teens entered the room; it was Jounouchi Katsuya and Honda Hiroto, Yuugi had heard that they were delinquents, but he wasn't entirely sure about that. He didn't give it much thought and began to open the puzzle's box.

Suddenly, a hand took the puzzle away from his grip.

"Ah!" he yelped in surprise, and glanced up.

It was Honda, with Jounouchi behind him. They were both smirking.

"What are you doing here Yuugi?" Honda asked, keeping the puzzle out of Yuugi's reach. "It's all dark and gloomy here." He looked at the puzzle's box. "This must be your treasure! It can be seen but you haven't seen it," he read, looking puzzled. He shrugged after a moment, and Yuugi took that instant to protest.

He jumped up, trying to reach for his treasure, and frowned when Honda stepped away, smirking and grinning like a little kid doing a prank. "Honda-kun! Give that back!" he pleaded. It only seemed to amuse Honda. "Give it back!"

Honda smirked and threw the box to Jounouchi.

"And he passes to Jounouchi!" he commentated.

Yuugi tried to catch his puzzle while it was flying over his head, but failed spectacularly at doing so.

"Wait that's valuable to me!" he protested weakly. It didn't deter any of the two boys. He was now completely certain they were bullies… Yuugi regretted letting Dogma leave earlier; maybe he could have helped him? No, Yuugi shook the thoughts out of his head; he couldn't depend too much on Dogma.

Jounouchi caught the puzzle's box easily, looking at it halfheartedly. "Since you're acting like a girl about this, then it must be pretty valuable." He threw the box in the air, and caught it before it could fall.

Yuugi felt anger slowly fill him, and frowned.

"All your jumping around is getting irritating! Quit it, Yuugi!"

He couldn't believe his ears; was he telling _him_ to stop trying to get his treasure back? Shouldn't Jounouchi be the one giving his treasure back? Yuugi once again shook the anger out of his head. It didn't matter; maybe Jounouchi was right about this?

"I'll teach you how to act like a man!" Jounouchi said, smirking like what he had just said was a joke. "Look! I'll give back the box, if you try with all your might to get it!"

Yuugi frowned. "But I hate fighting and violence!" he shouted.

Jounouchi stuck his fingers in his ears; why? Yuugi didn't know.

"Anyway," he said after a moment. "Give back the box!" He almost thought he had managed to get it back when Jounouchi seemed to hesitate.

"Not a chance!" Honda said from Jounouchi's side, smirking evilly at Yuugi.

"So what's in the box anyway?" Jounouchi asked, and Yuugi panicked when he saw that he was about to open the box. "Only one way to find out."

Flushing in nervousness, Yuugi shifted on his feet, staring hesitantly at Jounouchi. "Y-you can look, but don't lose it! It's extremely valuable!"

The teen threw a glance at Yuugi, but didn't give it much thought. Why would he care about this weakling's wants?

"Waah…" Jounouchi stared at the little pieces of puzzle inside the box. What was valuable about that? He snorted, discreetly took a piece – just to mess with Yuugi –, and threw the box to Honda. "That's lame."

The box was caught in its flight, and he paled when he saw it was _Mazaki Anzu_ , of all people, who caught it. "Waah!" he cried, and fled the room, Honda running along him.

But before he could get out, someone opened the door and entered—it was Dogma.

Yuugi noticed Dogma's face blanking for a few seconds, but once his gaze fell on Jounouchi, it lit up again.

"Ah! Katsuya!" he greeted, and Yuugi blinked at the familiarity; he didn't know they were in good terms. "What got you here?" He took a look at Anzu, his gaze staying on the box for a little while, and looked at Yuugi. He suddenly frowned at Jounouchi and Honda. "What did you do?" he growled.

Jounouchi looked like he was about to answer, but before he could, Honda grabbed the back of his collar and quickly dragged him out of the room.

Dogma's glare followed them outside.

"D-Dogma?" Yuugi hesitantly called, and flinched when Dogma's eyes fell on him.

They immediately softened, and Dogma walked toward him, sending a quick glance at Anzu and dismissing her almost immediately.

"Dogma?" Yuugi called again.

He didn't answer, and took Yuugi's face between his hands – making Yuugi blush and look away.

"Are you alright Yuug'?" he asked – Yuugi blushed at the nickname. "Did they hurt you?" His fingers brushed Yuugi's cheeks – his blush reddened again.

He tried to stutter a reply, but didn't succeed.

"Oh… I'm going to kill them if they hurt you again…" Dogma growled, his face hardening and his eyes darkening; he looked frightening, but Yuugi found comfort in Dogma trying to protect him.

"A-ah, it's alright. They didn't hurt me," he stuttered.

Dogma didn't look convinced, but he let the matter go and nodded. He turned to Anzu, who, for a reason Yuugi didn't know, was looking at them with a red blush on her cheeks.

"A-Anzu?" Yuugi called hesitantly. It snapped her out of her daze.

"Oh, Yuugi." She handed him his treasure. "Take care of it, alright?" She smiled at him, and he smiled back. She sent a look at Dogma, and blanched – he didn't know why. "I-I'll be going, then. Call me if you need any help, okay?" With a small smile, she waved and left the room.

Dogma turned to him. "I'm sorry Yuugi." He sent him a questioning look; why was he apologizing? "If I had come earlier, or if I hadn't gone to the infirmary—"

Yuugi cut him off before he could continue. "It's not your fault, Dogma." Realizing his error, he hurriedly added, "Not that anything happened, really."

Dogma sent him a disbelieving look.

"I-I'm serious; nothing happened. Jounouchi was only trying to make me a real man."

This seemed to be too much for Dogma, who growled again and suddenly turned around, pacing toward the room.

Yuugi caught his wrist before he could get too far. "Dogma! W-wait, d-don't hurt them. He was only trying to help me!" Yuugi tried.

Dogma whirled around, and noticing Yuugi's worried face, sighed and sat down in a nearby chair. "Sorry Yuugi. It's just…" He passed a hand through his hair, looking tired.

Yuugi sat next to him, still holding his wrist. His eyebrows creased worryingly.

"You know you can tell me everything, right?" Dogma looked up at him. "I will protect you, no matter what happens."

Yuugi hesitantly nodded, blinking at him in confusion.

"I'm completely serious Yuugi; I swear on my own life, I will protect you." Dogma's eyes were completely determined.

Yuugi felt his breath get knocked out of his lungs; he looked at Dogma with wide eyes. How could he say that so easily? This wasn't a meaningless promise—no, it was a promise of a lifetime – and even more if he trusted Dogma's words. Weren't they simple friends? What had he done to receive such a promise? They—they barely knew each other, right?

Yuugi's head was spinning.

Without wanting to, his lips moved. "Alright," his mouth said. He inwardly frowned at his own words; what the—?!

Dogma smiled – a breathless, relieved and simply _happy_ smile. "I'm glad." His hand moved, his fingers lacing with Yuugi's.

His eyes couldn't leave Dogma's; he felt a deep connection with him, something deeper the most friendship, deeper than the bond he had with his grandpa or with his mother, something deeper than anything he had ever known.

Now that he looked more closely, Dogma's eyes were very strange—a color and a form he had never seen before. They were blue, but not a blue like the sky – he would have said it was the color of the sea, but Yuugi had never seen the sea, so he wouldn't know – they were an electric blue. There were two rings of blue; the one closer to the pupil was lighter than the other one. It was strange, really strange, but, for a reason Yuugi didn't know, it suited Dogma.

Continuing to stare into Dogma's eyes, Yuugi breathed out. He felt relaxed, peaceful.

The spell was broken by the bell ringing.

Yuugi, realizing what he had been doing, flushed and tried to stutter something, anything, that would make things less awkward.

Dogma laughed at his nervousness. "Come on, Yuug'. It's alright." He stood up, tightening his grip on Yuugi's hand before letting it go, and smiled. "Class' starting. I gotta go to my own classroom." He waited for Yuugi to walk to his seat.

He walked out of the room, sending one last glance at Yuugi before disappearing behind the door frame.

Yuugi immediately relaxed, breathing out a sigh of relief. It had been so tense… Forgetting – or at least trying to – about what had just happened, Yuugi turned toward the window, looking out at the students rushing to join their classrooms.

* * *

Yuugi sent a glance at Ushio, looking forward again when he saw that the dark-haired teen was still looking at him.

He frowned, Ushio was a weird person; talking about bullying and proposing to be his bodyguard. Yuugi didn't need something like that!

Yuugi arrived at the school entrance, feeling a little saddened by the absence of Dogma; he had thought they would be able to go home together…

"Oh! Yuugi!" Dogma grinned at him, jumping from where he had been waiting for Yuugi. "How about going home together?" he asked, not showing the nervousness that he was feeling.

"Yeah!" Yuugi smiled at Dogma. He could feel other people staring, and he absently wondered why, but didn't give it much thought. "Where do you live?" he asked in curiosity.

Dogma shrugged, gesturing toward a random direction.

Yuugi sweat dropped. "W-well, I live at the Kame Game Shop. Do you know where it is?"

Dogma tilted his head pensively. "Yeah, I think I do." He grinned at Yuugi, looking down to meet his eyes – Yuugi flushed a little, cursing his height. "There's an old man there, right? Now that I think about it, his hair looks a little like yours…" Dogma muttered.

Yuugi sweat dropped at the description.

"Yeah, that's my grandpa," he said, smiling brightly at Dogma.

Dogma nodded in understanding. "Then, it's in the same direction as my house, so it's alright." He shoved his hands in his pockets, and Yuugi belatedly realized that he didn't have any schoolbag – but he didn't dare question him.

In no time, they had reached Yuugi's house.

"I'm home!" Yuugi called, pushing the door open.

The bell above the door rang. Yuugi's grandpa, Sugoroku, looked up from the counter.

He welcomed Yuugi, and while Yuugi's back was turned to him, he gave a stern look to Dogma, who blinked innocently at him.

Yuugi turned to look at Dogma, who was still blinking in confusion at Sogoroku's look. He smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow then!" he said.

Dogma grinned and nodded.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow Yuug'!" Dogma waved as he walked out. Just before he disappeared behind the door frame, he sent, "Don't spend all your night on that puzzle!"

* * *

"Hey, Dogma! The nurse's calling you again!"

Dogma groaned and pulled at a few strands of his hair – those that were escaping his messy braid. He looked at Yuugi apologetically, eyes dropping and lips upturned. "Sorry Yuug', I can't escape her for too long—last time I tried, she chased me all around school and beat me up for not coming." He pushed himself up. "I think it'll be the last time, though." He ruffled Yuugi's hair gently. "Don't get in trouble, okay?"

Yuugi grumbled, flattening his hair and trying to ignore the burning of his cheeks. "I'm not a kid, you know. I can keep myself out of troubles."

Dogma chuckled and nodded; he walked out.

Yuugi looked down at his lap. He was used to being alone, and yet… he felt lonely now. He wondered why; it had only begun since he met Dogma.

"Yuugi-kun!" He looked up to see Ushio at the door, smirking at him. Remembering the boy's words from the day before, Yuugi resisted the urge to groan and hide his face in his arms—it seemed like he wouldn't be able to keep his promise of keeping himself out of troubles. "Would you come with me for a minute?"

Yuugi hesitated, but nodded.

Ushio motioned for him to follow, and he did. They walked through the corridors and stairs, and finally arrived outside. Ushio led him to the back of the school, where the bikes were put.

Unable to bear the curiosity any longer, Yuugi asked, "What did you want to show me, Ushio-san?"

Ushio didn't look at him as he answered. "Heh. Just follow me; I'm sure you'll like it." Ushio stopped, looking toward a wall.

Curious about the teen suddenly stopping, Yuugi peeked from behind him, and immediately froze.

"Check it out, Yuugi-kun!" There, under Yuugi's frightened and horrified eyes, Jounouchi and Honda were bleeding out, bruises and cuts all over their skin and clothes bloodied and torn beyond repair.

The two groaned, looking up at them.

"Jounouchi! Honda! Who did this?" Yuugi cried worryingly.

Ushio smirked. "Yuugi-kun, I told you, consider me your bodyguard! It's my duty to punish these guys! They're just bullies!"

"B-but… Ushio-san! This is too cruel!" He crouched next to Jounouchi. "Are you alright Jounouchi-kun? Honda-kun?"

Jounouchi glared at him, and he flinched back a little, before remembering his resolve and returning his glare with worried eyes.

"Yuugi… You brat; I knew you were behind this…" Jounouchi said, his left eye closing with pain – he couldn't keep it open for too long.

"I'm not!" Yuugi cried. How could he ever do something like that? "Why would I ever ask for this?!" He reached for Jounouchi, hoping to take away some of his pain, but he was pushed away before he could.

Ushio strode forward, hitting Jounouchi's stomach with a harsh kick. "Stay away Yuugi-kun. I'm not done punishing them!" He hit Jounouchi in the stomach again, and Jounouchi cried out.

The flag " _morals_ " flew mockingly on Ushio's jacket.

Yuugi rushed to pose before Ushio. "Stop it!" He tried to hide Jounouchi from Ushio's eyes, his arms wide in hope it would cover Jounouchi's prone form.

"Oh, really? Yuugi, why 're you protecting those jerks?" Ushio frowned, but he still had a smirk. "You're a weird guy," he muttered, and said in a louder voice, "This is your chance to get your revenge! Hit them! Kick them!" His eyes gained a dark, haunted look, but it flickered out before Yuugi could look further into it.

Yuugi trembled from the force of his emotions, his hands forming into fists. "I can't do that to my _friends_!" he shouted, sure of his own feelings and ready to fight tooth and nail to protect his _friends_ —just like Dogma would.

He felt Jounouchi shift beside him, but he didn't give it much thought.

Ushio's smirk deepened. "Heh. Most people hate those that bully them. You're a pretty nice guy, calling these punks your friends." He smirked down at them. "What a masochist," he murmured.

"It wasn't bullying…" Yuugi tried to counter. "This punishment is no good…" Ushio was becoming more and more intimidating, the shadow on his face making him look evil—just like those mean guys from cartoons and animes.

"Well, alright…" Yuugi almost breathed out a sigh of relief; maybe he would let them go now. "By the way, Yuugi-kun! I'll take my payment now!"

Yuugi froze in horror.

"My bodyguard fee; 200,000 Yen!"

"What?! 200,000 Yen?!"

"Heh heh," Ushio laughed cruelly. His face was pulled into a dark smirk. "For 200,000, you can hit them as much as you like. You won't be distracted this way; but who said that'd be cheap…"

Yuugi faced the ground, but his eyes didn't leave Ushio—he was too afraid to do it.

"Well? Maybe you're unsatisfied because I didn't hit them enough…"

Yuugi gasped, his mind quickly coming to a decision, he shouted, "You've done more than enough! If anyone's beating them up more, it's me!"

Jounouchi shifted again.

Ushio smirked again. "And now you've decided to beat them… Fine, have it your way." He grasped Yuugi's collar, lifting him up from the ground. "I'll leave you a bodily reminder to pay me."

Yuugi tried to keep away from Ushio, but he couldn't do much.

"It's in my nature to hate bullying… but what I'm about to do isn't bullying… it's a warning!"

Suddenly, he punched Yuugi in the face, sending him flying. Yuugi was sent to the ground, and was hit again, and again, and again.

"Well, I guess that's enough. Yeah! Until tomorrow, when you bring my money! Remember 200,000!" Yuugi coughed, trying to breathe, but failing miserably. "Believe me, this pain is nothing." Out of nowhere, Ushio took a knife and licked it – why? Yuugi didn't know – his face more evil than anything Yuugi had ever seen. "I could teach you the real meaning of pain!"

He prepared himself to hit him again—seeing Ushio's fist closing up on his face, he closed his eyes.

But the hit never touched him, and when he opened his eyes again, Ushio had disappeared, leaving nothing behind if Yuugi and Jounouchi and Honda. "H-huh…?" He looked around, but didn't see anyone except the three of them. Maybe Ushio had done that only to scare him.

"Yuugi!"

He whirled around; Dogma!

He rushed to Yuugi, crouching down to reach him—he sent a quick glance at Jounouchi and Honda, but didn't say anything about them. "Yuugi," Dogma whispered. He looked on the verge of snapping; his hands shaking and his eyes filled with barely-hidden fury. "Not a kid, huh. Can take of yourself," he mocked. "Look at where it took you." He caressed Yuugi's wounds gently. "Can you stand?" He offered his hand, helping Yuugi up.

"Y-yeah…" Yuugi looked at their linked hands. "I'm sorry for causing trouble again, but…" he looked at Jounouchi and Honda; Honda was still unconscious, but Jounouchi was looking at them with surprise on his face. "I couldn't leave them to Ushio…"

Dogma looked at him, a blank expression on his face. For a moment, Yuugi feared he had somehow angered or offended Dogma, but soon, the blankness was replaced by a deep sadness that made Yuugi flinch. Dogma sighed tiredly, passing a hand through his hair.

"I'm going to get gray hair over you," he muttered. He turned to Jounouchi, who was struggling to stay awake. "I'll get the nurse, 'kay?" He didn't wait for an answer, and led Yuugi away.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

That night, Yuugi Mutou finally completed the Millennium Puzzle.

Dogma, looking at the Other Yuugi's back as he walked to Domino High, wondered how on earth he would be able to protect Yuugi from what was about to happen.

After a moment of thought, he chuckled to himself, and walked back to his house.

* * *

(1) Hello everyone. To those who read this story before I revamped it, just know that I only changed some little things (like the fact that in the first version, Dogma didn't remember about Yu-Gi-Oh! until the end of the chapter, and in this one, he knew all along).  
The revamp was mostly there to put more space so that you guys could read this more easily.

(2) Cover was drawn by myself. It's not really good, and it's not even colored (except if I changed it some time in the future), but it's how I imagine Dogma. Of course, you can think of him with another appearance if you wish to. Do whatever you want with his appearance – the only thing that matters is his personality.  
Also, in case this isn't colored: hair is blond, eyes blue, jacket blue (uniform's jacket, in fact), and shirt black.

(3) FANART: Dogma by **hatsooneh**. S/he's on tumblr, under that name. (I would put the link on my profile – I tried – but since this website is shit, it doesn't work. Sorry.)


	2. two – lying eyes

Hello, crea-sei here. Nice to see you again.

Notes and precisions are at the bottom, as usual.

* * *

 **appear, think, believe  
** { _chapter two : lying eyes_ }

* * *

Yuugi yawned, hiding his mouth with his palm.

Dogma looked down at him, eyebrows creasing in worry – and already he was acting as the worrywart (or do you say mother-hen?) that he was. "Are you alright?" he asked, tilting his head to look at Yuugi more closely. "Did you not sleep well?"

Yuugi blushed, shaking his head. "I'm alright." He was about to continue, saying that he _did_ sleep well, but he couldn't even remember going to sleep; the only thing he could remember was… completing the puzzle. Yuugi gasped, and looked up to his friend with an excited smile.

Dogma blinked in surprise, but smiled along – happy to see his friend happy.

"I finished the puzzle!" Yuugi exclaimed.

Dogma's gaze drifted down to the pyramid hanging off his neck, even though he had probably noticed it before and didn't need Yuugi pointing it out. He smiled, his piercing blue eyes softening and gazing back at him – with a certain, warm emotion that Yuugi couldn't describe.

"Yeah," he answered shortly, "it's fantastic." And somehow, there seemed to be a deeper meaning than just what was being said, a secret meaning, a hidden meaning, something that wasn't meant to be understood by Yuugi.

(But it was alright. Yuugi didn't mind—as long as Dogma kept smiling at him.)

The two of them continued to walk in comfortable silence, Dogma absently humming a melody as Yuugi gently passed his fingers over every inch of his treasure, his puzzle.

As they rounded a corner, Jounouchi approached them. "Yo, Yuugi, Dogma..."

Yuugi blinked in surprise.

"Ah, Jounouchi-kun!" Yuugi didn't fight off the smile that threatened to break over his face. He was in an incredibly good mood.

Dogma simply nodded in greeting, stopping his humming, much to Yuugi's regret.

Jounouchi seemed surprised at his smile, but he returned it. "Hey, how are you injuries?"

The question was directed to Yuugi, but for some reason, Dogma frowned, looking oddly angry for a moment – though it wasn't directed to either of them.

"Fine..." Yuugi replied briefly, even as he felt Dogma's eyes on him, worried as he constantly seemed to be with Yuugi. It was true, he felt better than yesterday. Dogma had taken good care of him, anyway. "How about you?" He eyed Jounouchi's bandages and bruises worriedly – it was his fault.

"I feel fine!" He briefly wondered if Jounouchi was just trying to act tough. Maybe, maybe not. "Speaking of which… I also brought a treasure!" he announced suddenly. "Want to see it?"

"Yeah!"

Yuugi could see Dogma rolling his eyes, looking entirely fond for a second – as if he knew what Jounouchi's treasure was, and found it cheesy or stupid.

"Hahaha, sorry, my treasure is in plain view, but you can't see it," Yuugi startled at the riddle, "so I can't show it to you!" _It's in plain sight, but invisible…_ What could it possibly mean? Jounouchi didn't wait for him to answer, and continued. "It's _friendship_! Yuugi, Dogma" (– said person startled at that, as if surprised he was even included –) "and Jounouchi are visible… but our friendship is invisible!"

Yuugi's heart stuttered. Friendship. Jounouchi considered Yuugi a friend. Jounouchi and Yuugi were friends. Tears sprang in Yuugi's eyes, and he smiled heartily.

He had _two_ friends! It was more than he could ever wish for!

"Yeah!"

As soon as Jounouchi saw his smile, he blushed, as if embarrassed, and whirled around. "Well, come on, we've gotta get to class!" He ran away, loosing one shoe in the process.

Yuugi ran after him, Jounouchi's shoe in hand.

Dogma was left in the empty corridor, feeling oddly empty, now that Yuugi's comfortable presence wasn't at his side anymore. After a moment of thought, he sighed, turned around, and set to work.

* * *

Hushed whispers about Ushio; all telling of his unfortunate fate. Some said he had died, others said he had gone insane.

Ultimately, all of them agreed that Ushio was gone, and wouldn't come back.

* * *

Yuugi blinked, suddenly reminded of something, and looked up at Jounouchi. "J-Jounouchi-kun, did you see that video?"

The taller teen looked down at Yuugi – _looked down_! He had to look down! Yuugi cursed his small height – and seemed confused for a second or two, before his expression cleared up. In the background, Dogma frowned, apparently not understanding what Yuugi was talking about.

Yuugi didn't dare say it aloud – he was sure Dogma wasn't entirely interested in that kind of stuff, anyway.

"Oh, that..." Jounouchi tilted his head back, looking pensive for a moment. "Well, I squinted, but..." He squinted, as if he could still see the video in front of his eyes. "I couldn't see any of the important stuff! Dammit!" He shook his head, clenching a fist in frustration—Yuugi tried not to blush, but failed. "The stupid mosaic got in the way!"

Dogma still looked confused, and quite frustrated at not being included in the 'secret.' He glanced at Yuugi's face, stared at his reddened cheeks for a moment, before understanding dawned on him, and he simply sighed. For a moment, he looked exasperated.

Yuugi's blush deepened.

Jounouchi suddenly whirled around, pointing a finger to Yuugi. He was smirking."Yuugi, I'll lend it to you sometime!" He pointed his finger to Dogma. "And you too, if you want."

"Eh?!" Yuugi blushed, chancing a glance at Dogma, and, not seeing any disapproval in his eyes, nodded. He tried not to appear too eager. "Y-yes!"

Dogma sighed again, though something warm entered his eyes – Yuugi could only guess it was fondness. "No thanks, Katsuya." He shook his head, but offered a smile. Something was off though; the smile didn't appear as genuine as the ones he usually offered to Yuugi. He turned his eyes forward again, and blinked in surprise. "Oh." There seemed to be apprehension in his voice.

Yuugi turned around to see what Dogma could possibly fear. In front of the school stood a van; a TV van. Yuugi saw nothing scary in that.

"Why is there a television van parked outside the school?" Jounouchi asked. Dogma shrugged, taking a few steps forward, but then stopping suddenly, as if remembering something.

"M-maybe a celebrity or a super-famous idol is coming to the school!" Yuugi said excitedly, trying not to worry about his friend's odd behavior. Jounouchi grinned, just as excited as Yuugi. Dogma seemed not to share their excitement.

"Oh yeah, that must be it, Yuugi!" Jounouchi gripped Yuugi's shoulders, jumping up and down excitedly.

Dogma huffed in amusement; he probably thought the two of them were being childish.

"Yeah!" Yuugi hesitated, but, finding reassurance and comfort in his friends' presence, ran up to the van's windows. "I'll take a look..." He tried to look through, but couldn't see a thing. He paid no mind to Jounouchi's teasing, too excited to think too much about it. His heart was beating wildly in his ribcage. "I can't see anything! I think it's a one-way window..." He pressed his face against the window, but it didn't help. "I can't see anything..."

He heard muffled sounds from inside and took a step back, but no one came out. He frowned.

Dogma's hand closed up on his shoulder, and he gently guided Yuugi away.

Jounouchi trailed after them, seemingly just as disappointed as Yuugi felt.

Dogma gave him a tender smile. "Let's go. If there really is an idol inside, then you will be able to see them later." Yuugi hesitantly nodded, knowing Dogma was right, but still disappointed. "Don't be so disappointed. I'm sure you'll be able to meet someone famous, one day."

Yuugi blinked at the strange tone in Dogma's voice, and tilted his head to look at his friend. But Dogma wasn't looking at him anymore.

He turned to give Jounouchi a questioning look, but the teen only shrugged helplessly.

* * *

Jounouchi sat on the desk, laying a foot on a nearby chair. Dogma frowned at that, and pushed it off. Jounouchi pouted but didn't protest. Anzu gave Dogma an approving look. Yuugi only smiled distractedly, his mind still on the television van outside.

"Oh hey, Anzu, have I told you about the idol?" Jounouchi suddenly asked, though it was a rhetorical question.

"Whaaat? An idol?!" Anzu's eyes seemed ready to pop out of their sockets. After a moment though, her stare turned flat, unimpressed. She turned to Dogma, eyes questioning, and he simply stared back, the corners of his lips tilted up in amusement.

Jounouchi continued, not noticing what was happening. "Sure! And the evidence is the TV van parked outside!" He turned to pat Yuugi on the shoulder, which was probably meant to be encouraging. "Tell her, Yuugi!"

"W-well… Yeah," Yuugi stuttered out.

Anzu sighed. "If it were true, then someone would have seen this idol..." She smiled. "And I haven't heard anything about an idol!"

Jounouchi faltered for a moment, before his grin widened again.

"Moron!" Anzu seemed ticked off at being called that way, even though everyone knew neither of them ever meant their insults. "She's hiding, probably disguised as a student!" Dogma grimaced at that, as if he thought the idea was completely stupid. "But I'm going to get her alone and unmask her!" Yuugi cringed at the volume, trying to ignore the looks they were receiving – most of them were pitying.

"J-Jounouchi-kun… That… That's..." Yuugi didn't manage to finish his sentence, as Jounouchi began to laugh loudly, apparently satisfied with his plan.

Dogma sighed from beside them, and Yuugi turned to him in favor of trying to calm Jounouchi – better let that kind of thing to Anzu.

The fighter smiled down at him, all gentle and kind. They both ignored the bickering pair behind them. Yuugi hesitated, and Dogma seemed to notice. "What do you think, Yuugi?" He tilted his head to look at Yuugi more in the eyes, and unconsciously gave Yuugi an eyeful of his neck – Yuugi couldn't help but notice that there was a white bandage there.

The words that he had been to fall from his lips all but disappeared. "Dogma… Did you hurt yourself…?" Dogma blinked in surprise, following Yuugi's gaze, and smiled when he saw the white patch.

"Yeah, but it's not that important. Though…" Dogma trailed off. He reached the patch with a hand, and blanched suddenly. " _Merde_ , it's bleeding out again." Yuugi's eyes grew wide, and he gave his friend a worried look. Dogma, instead of worrying about himself, hurried to reassure him. "Ah, don't worry, it's nothing..." His hands flailed uselessly. "I just need to go to the nurse office..." He hesitated, his eyes flickering to the still bickering pair. "I'll come back as soon as I can, alright?"

Just as he was about to run off again, he whirled around, giving Yuugi quite a scare, and placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Please, stay with Jounouchi. I have a bad feeling about this television van."

* * *

"But… Maybe the TV van really is here to cover something else..." Jounouchi seemed to deflate, and Yuugi inwardly cringed – had he said something bad?

"Yuugi! Not you too!" Jounouchi frowned, and began to run away. "It's not just a dream, Yuugi! You have to believe!" he shouted as he went. "Fine, I'll search it by myself! Forget you!" He humphed. "Bye!"

Yuugi weakly lifted a hand to try and prevent his friend from going, "Ah… Jounouchi-kun!" but the teenager didn't listen and didn't turn back. Yuugi guessed he had said something really wrong, to make Jounouchi flee like that. And Dogma still hadn't come back… Yuugi gasped silently; Dogma had asked him to stay with Jounouchi. Yuugi looked down guiltily.

"Yuugi-kun!"

Yuugi jumped in surprise and turned around. It was a student he didn't recognize. "Um… Who are you…?" He took a step back as the student's face closed in.

"My name is Fujita." Yuugi didn't like the odd gleam in Fujita's eyes. He bowed, mumbling a quiet 'nice to meet you,' fidgeting nervously under the boy's gaze. "I know there's an idol in this school… Yuugi-kun, know anything about that?"

Forgetting everything about his previous nervousness, Yuugi brightened up, smiling excitedly. "Wow! There really is an idol!" Maybe he would be able to meet them! Hopefully, he would be able to convince him to take a photo with Jounouchi.

"Well duh!" The weird gleam in Fujita's eyes was still there, and, in a certain way, his smile was twisted and dark. Yuugi paid it no mind. "Over there! I think you two would get along, too… Tell you what, I'll introduce you!" Fujita then mumbled something, along the lines of "the two of us are pals," but Yuugi couldn't be sure, as his heart was pounding loudly into his ribcage.

"Wow!" Who was it? Who was this idol? Yuugi smiled happily, unable to think about anything else but his soon-to-be meeting with the mysterious idol.

Fujita began to leave, and Yuugi hesitated, thinking for a brief moment that he wouldn't tell him where the idol was.

Fortunately, Fujita said, "Come on, the idol is behind the gym!" before running away. "Be sure to come alone!" he added. Yuugi guessed that the idol wouldn't want too many people to know that they were behind the school.

"Okay!" Yuugi replied, immediately running forward to catch up with Fujita. For a very brief moment, Yuugi wondered why Fujita told him that – when the two of them had just met – and how Fujita knew him; the thought disappeared as soon as it had came to be though, and Yuugi completely forgot about logic. His heart was still beating wildly in his ribcage.

As Yuugi was following Fujita, they passed in front of the infirmary. Yuugi faltered, suddenly reminded that he had promised to Dogma that he would stay with Jounouchi, that he had already disappointed Dogma by getting in trouble with Ushio – bless his poor soul; as evil as he had been, no one deserved that fate – and that maybe he wouldn't get another chance at redemption, that maybe Dogma wouldn't forgive him again.

Yuugi breathed in deeply, stopping completely in his slow run, and turned toward the infirmary.

"Hey, hurry up!" Fujita called, a few meters away from him.

Yuugi hurried to catch up.

* * *

Dogma exhaled slowly, feeling irritation and pure _anger_ and _rage_ rise inside him. Every breath was getting harder and harder to even out. His heart was beating dreadfully loud in his ribcage, and he could hear nothing but that.

Yuugi hadn't listened, _again_.

Dogma passed a hand through his hair, surely making it even messier than it currently was. He didn't care though. The only thing he could think about was the damn director with his damn emission and his damn camera and his damn mosaic—and Yuugi getting hurt.

(He was sure Katsuya got hurt too, but he honestly didn't care. Not when _Yuugi_ was hurt.)

Yuugi hadn't listened; Yuugi had gotten hurt.

And all because of that damn director with his damn mosaic, all because of that damn nurse with her damn tests and her damn worried nature, all because of him and his damn carelessness.

Dogma sighed—no, exhaled loudly again, closing his eyes briefly in a futile attempt to compose himself before anyone could see him like that (god forbid, especially not Yuugi). He snapped his eyelids open when the door opened. He simply turned his head, and was glad to see it was only Katsuya.

The teen barely seemed surprised at the anger in his eyes, and lifted an eyebrow at the sight of Dogma's bloody hands. "What happened?"

Dogma shrugged. "Went in their van; broke everything," _with my own two hands, and I wish I could have done more than just that_.

Katsuya blinked in surprise, and whistled. "You…" he hesitated, "you're really furious."

As if it wasn't obvious, already.

Dogma huffed a laugh, not even bothering to reply, and turned back to the sink, washing his hands. He would have put on bandages – in order not to worry Yuugi – but he didn't have any on him, and Yuugi currently was in the infirmary, so going there to fetch some bandages was a big no-no.

Dogma looked up at the mirror. He arranged his hair, and composed his expression.

In the background, Katsuya seemed fascinated by the process. Dogma was sure that, if he had been anyone else, Katsuya would have said something along the lines of, _you're sick, man_. But Katsuya knew enough, knew that saying this kind of things was a bad idea, knew that there was more to it than just fake smiles and fake kindness. He knew of the deep anger that rested in Dogma's soul.

Dogma walked out, not bothering to look back and check if Katsuya was following him. He could only concentrate on Yuugi – on Yuugi who was hurt because of him, on Yuugi who would 'change' into Yami at nightfall and go _avenge_ Katsuya.

He tried not to glower, but considering the looks the other students sent him, he failed.

Dogma quickly reached the infirmary. He silently opened the sliding doors, and entered. He heard Katsuya close them behind him, a lot less silent.

Yuugi was sitting on a bed, his cheeks covered in band-aids and his hands covered with blisters. His head snapped up, and, as his eyes met Dogma's, he appeared guilty, and shifted in his seat.

Dogma inwardly glowered, now _really_ wishing he had broken one or two bones of the damn director – maybe he should have teared off his skin, or plucked out his eyeballs, or broken all his fingers one by one until—

He snapped out of his _wonderful_ fantasy, realizing that if he got too much into it, he could scare Yuugi.

"Yuugi," he breathed. As soon as the name left his tongue, his shoulders slumped, and all the anger he had felt evaporated into thin air; it was like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He hurried to face Yuugi, and once he was close enough, he grabbed his hands, holding them carefully in his owns.

(He was sure it looked like he was handling a fragile porcelain doll, and that probably was because Yuugi _was_ fragile – he was more precious than a simple porcelain doll though.)

"Yuugi," he repeated, and felt a shadow of mortification when his eyes began to burn. He decided to ignore it. "Are you..." _alright?_ "How..." _are you doing?_ He didn't even need Yuugi's answers. He was still so nervous, so anxious, so stressed out, because _Yuugi_ was here, was at the infirmary – _because (his) Yuugi was hurt_. Instead, he settled for: "Yuugi," as he squeezed his dear friend( _companionpartnerbelovedtreasureprotégé_ )'s hands as if his life depended on it.

( _When did this happen?_ he wondered absently. When did he start caring so much about— about anyone, really? Was it because of his past self's adoration for the 'fictional character', or was it because his whole life had been spent thinking about how Dogma should act with him? But then, why did he not act that way with the others? It didn't make sense.)

Said person seemed to catch on what he was trying to say. "Dogma," he said, more calmly than Dogma would have expected. "I'm alright." He glanced over his shoulder to look at Katsuya. "We both are," as if Dogma cared about Katsuya's well being. Better let Yuugi live in that fantasy, he guessed.

"Yeah," Dogma breathed out.

And, looking at the yellow and purple bruises on Yuugi's face, Dogma decided that the damn director deserved the same fate as the damn Ushio.

* * *

"Good morning," Yuugi greeted, smiling at Jounouchi.

Dogma was already at his side, looking more relaxed and happy than he had been the day before. He nodded to Jounouchi in greeting.

"Good morning!" Jounouchi greeted back. "Heh… Yuugi! Be happy! I brought the goods!" He presented a VHS, which name was _Hard-on Paradise_.

Yuugi heard Dogma sigh – though it was full of fondness.

"Yaay! Thank you, Jounouchi-kun!" Yuugi cried in happiness – it would be the first time he ever watched something of the like. "I'll watch it tonight!"

Jounouchi giggled ( _giggled!_ ) perversely, and threw the VHS at him.

Before it could fall into Yuugi's waiting palms, a hand caught it. He felt his heart miss a beat in surprise, and he was sure his poor heart missed another beat when he saw who exactly had caught the VHS. It was Anzu! Both him and Jounouchi cried out in alarm, while Dogma simply looked amused.

"What's this interesting movie?" Anzu asked, apparently not seeing the name written on the side of the VHS. "What is it? Let me borrow it..."

Dogma chose this moment to intervene. "I'm not sure you'll like it, Mazaki." He stopped Anzu and took the VHS from her grip. She didn't seem to mind, only appearing more curious. "It's something personal, anyway. And I'm not sure the people involved would appreciate the fact that their video was seen by someone other than Yuug' and Katsuya," he explained simply, and Yuugi was sure that if he didn't already know the truth, then he would have trusted Dogma wholeheartedly.

Anzu nodded, looking ashamed of herself for a moment. "Oh, I see." She looked at Jounouchi for a long moment. "Knowing Jounouchi, I thought it was simply porn." She smiled at Dogma. "Guess I was wrong."

Yuugi laughed uneasily, absently wondering why Dogma could fool people so easily and rapidly, but found deep in himself that he didn't really want to know.

* * *

(1) This chapter is shorter. Mainly because the actual manga chapter is shorter, but also because a large part of the story was unusable. This chapter is roughly 3,500 words.

(2) Like the first chapter, this chapter was revamped. There were some things added, but like in the first chapter, I mainly just put space to make reading smoother.


	3. three – hard beat

Hey, nice to see you there. I'm crea-sei, you know, that one weird fanfiction author.

As usual, notes and precisions at the end of the chapter.

* * *

 **appear, think, believe  
** { _chapter t_ _hree_ _:_ _hard beat_ }

* * *

"I'm going!"

Sugoroku smiled from behind the counter, and offered a small wave. "Have fun!"

Yuugi smiled back, and jogged out of the Kame shop.

Dogma was already waiting for him, listening to something on his mp3 player. He looked up, and, seeing Yuugi there, smiled. He slipped off his earbuds. "Are you ready?"

Yuugi nodded, making a small affirmative sound. Without another word, the two began to walk to the bus station.

Dogma glanced at him, and a somber expression came upon his face. "Yuugi..." Said teen tensed, worried that he might have done something bad. "At what hour did you go to sleep? You have dark rims under your eyes!"

Yuugi blinked in surprise, having expected something much worse than that. "Oh, hum…. I-it's nothing."

Dogma didn't seem to take it as lightly as Yuugi though, as his eyebrows creased up in obvious worry. "Nothing?" His voice took a more sarcastic tone. "Yeah, right. As if I believe that."

Yuugi looked down guiltily, and heard Dogma sigh.

"Well, I can't force you," he said after a moment.

Yuugi looked up again, watching his friend's face carefully, but didn't find any sign of disappointment.

" _But_ ," Dogma stressed, "if anything, and I say _anything_ , bothers you, you can come to me, alright? Even if it's just a stupid test or," there was a slight pause, as he seemed to be troubled about something, "you crushing on someone."

Yuugi blushed furiously, but nodded, avoiding Dogma's eyes in embarrassment. Nevertheless, he felt his heart flutter in happiness at Dogma's words.

They arrived at the bus stop. They didn't have to wait long, as the bus arrived before they could begin a conversation again. As Yuugi stepped in, Dogma following him closely, he thought, _today will be a fun day_ , as he usually did. A small, content smile appeared on his face.

Yuugi tried to slip through the mass of people present on the bus. There wasn't any open seat.

The bus came to a sudden stop; as Yuugi stumbled and almost fell, Dogma helped him up, holding his wrist like he would to a child. There was a guarded look on his face, as if he was waiting for something to happen, something grave that he hoped to avoid. Yuugi briefly frowned in worry, but it disappeared as Dogma's face opened and relaxed.

"Oh, look," Dogma jerked his head to a teen standing nearby. "That's Hanasaki Tomoya."

Yuugi squinted, and, effectively, it was Hanasaki. He had never noticed that they took the same bus to school…

"Hey, Hanasaki," Dogma called, smiling, and gently pushing Yuugi forward, just as someone's elbow risked hitting his face. "Good morning!"

Hanasaki looked at the two of them for a long time – his gaze lingering on Yuugi. Finally, he nodded in greeting, but didn't say a word, and turned back to his book.

Dogma didn't wait any longer, and moved forward to latch on a hanging strap. He didn't free his wrist, but Yuugi didn't mind, and instead found comfort in feeling the warmness of his friend's hand.

Now that they were both 'safe' – though Yuugi was only 'hanging' on his friend's hand – Yuugi let himself relax.

He looked around; they were in the back of the bus, which, now that he looked, was almost empty. Loud noises came from the only person present there – it was almost deafening, and Yuugi was tempted to cover his ears with his hands, but couldn't, as one hand was still in Dogma's grip. He recognized the person there: Souzouji from class C.

Before Yuugi could get any further in his thoughts, the bus suddenly stopped again. Immediately, Dogma's grip on him tightened, and he found himself jerked to Dogma's chest.

Yuugi blushed, and tried to stutter out an apology, before he realized that Dogma had done that deliberately, and was now watching him with worried eyes.

"Are you alright?" he asked, and Yuugi found himself nodding before he even finished his question. Dogma's worried frown melted, and his grip loosened. "Wonder what happened..." he muttered. Yuugi shrugged helplessly.

"Yuugi!" a voice called from beside them. Yuugi jerked in surprise, and whirled around – he absently noted that Dogma's grip tightened again.

It was Souzouji.

He was looking at Yuugi, a gleam in his eyes that, in a way, reminded him of the fake student Fujita, and of the bully Ushio. Yuugi shivered and unconsciously took a step back. Souzouji looked ready to say more, but, as his eyes drifted to something beside Yuugi, he paled and, sinking in his seat, looked away.

Yuugi blinked in surprise, wondering what the sudden change of heart was about. He glanced up at his friend, but he was looking somewhere else.

He turned to Yuugi after a moment though, eyes asking what was wrong. Yuugi just shrugged and shook his head.

He glanced at the sweating Souzouji one last time, before deciding it didn't matter.

* * *

"Mornin', Yuugi, Dogma!" Jounouchi greeted jovially as he came into the classroom.

While Yuugi was sitting at his desk, Dogma was just standing there – it would have looked awkward for anyone else, but Dogma had that kind of casual confidence that made him unable to look awkward.

Yuugi smiled. "Morning, Jounouchi-kun."

Dogma only nodded, though a smile also appeared on his lips.

"You know," Jounouchi began, "I've been investigating ever since that time, and… as I thought, there is no idol in this school!"

Yuugi was surprised at that, reeling back in shock and making a small cry of: "What? Jounouchi-kun, you're still investigating that?!"

Jounouchi continued, unbothered. "Therefore..." He made a dramatic – heroic in his opinion – pose. "I shall become this school's number one!"

Both his friends laughed at that, and Jounouchi grinned.

"I doubt you would have any fan," Dogma jabbed, grinning right back.

Jounouchi made an offended noise in the back of his throat, and glared at him, though there wasn't any heat in it. "You'll see," he promised. "You'll see."

* * *

Ever since Souzouji had called Yuugi on that bus, he had seen him a lot. Every time, the teen had called him, but, after looking at something over Yuugi's shoulder, had faltered, glared at the ground, and walked away briskly. It had been three days since the day Yuugi had met Souzouji for the first time.

Yuugi was nervous now.

For some reason, he had a really bad feeling. He could feel that something was coming.

He frowned, and locked his shoe locker. He wondered why he was feeling like that. He turned around, and almost gasped in surprise.

Hanasaki was there, looking troubled. "Hum… Yuugi-kun..." He suddenly presented some tickets to Yuugi. "I meant to ask you… W-would you like to buy one of these tickets?" Yuugi could see that he was sweating profusely, and he wondered why – it was just some tickets.

"Tickets?" Yuugi asked; the bad feeling came back stronger. "For what?"

Hanasaki seemed to hesitate. "D-Do you know Souzouji from class C?" Yuugi felt his blood freeze. "This is a ticket to a live show?" A live show, and Souzouji… It meant that… Had Hanasaki been bullied into this?

"Umm, is that so…" What could he possibly say?! If Hanasaki had effectively been bullied into this, then Yuugi _had_ to help, even if it meant buying all the tickets himself, and then going to Souzouji's infamous live show all by himself.

"So… help me out by buying one..." Yuugi gulped, his heart beating wildly in his chest. "I have five, but haven't been able to sell a single one..." Yuugi could feel sweat sliding down his back. He didn't want to go, but he didn't want Hanasaki to get in trouble, especially if he could help it.

He forced a smile on his face. "Are you going, Hanasaki-kun?" He had to be sure. "You don't seem very excited about it…" Hanasaki became even more nervous at that.

He avoided Yuugi's eyes. "That's because no one has bought any…" Finally, he answered the real question, "…and really, I don't want to go."

 _I knew it!_ Yuugi felt horrible. He _needed_ to help Hanasaki, but how? "Let me see… 2,000 yen?" Yuugi checked his pockets. "Sorry, I don't have that much right now." Impulsively, Yuugi continued. "I'll tell you what! Give me those tickets, and I'll sell them to someone! How does that sound?"

Hanasaki seemed surprised. "You… You'd really do that, Yuugi-kun?"

Yuugi smiled gently, and nodded. "Yeah." He held up a hand. "If you really don't want to go, then you shouldn't have to!"

Hanasaki brightened, and smiled. He quickly handed his tickets to Yuugi, who, even though he was smiling, felt like dying inside.

"Thank you, Yuugi-kun!"

Yuugi just nodded again, feeling like he couldn't talk. His heart was still beating loudly in his chest. And, absently, he wondered if Dogma would be disappointed in him if he learned that Yuugi had gotten in trouble again. Maybe he should talk to Dogma about it, or maybe Jounouchi.

Yuugi walked off, knowing that Dogma was waiting for him at the school-gate.

And, effectively, Dogma was there, waiting patiently for Yuugi. He waved and called his name. "Hey, Yuug'," Dogma smiled down at him gently. "You took longer than usual. Did something happen?" He appeared genuinely worried, and there was a nervous edge in his voice.

Yuugi could see dark rims under his eyes. When had those appeared?

Yuugi swallowed painfully, hesitating. He _could_ tell Dogma – and he was sure that if he did, Dogma would help, would find a solution. But there still was the nagging fear that getting in trouble again would disappoint Dogma, and he had gotten in trouble once again.

(Logically, he knew that Dogma wouldn't really be disappointed in Yuugi, and just feel frustrated at his own inability to protect Yuugi, but, _still_ , he was afraid, so afraid. He didn't want to lose his friend.)

"Nah," he said, simply. "I'm just a little worried about a test I have tomorrow."

Yuugi's heart clenched painfully.

* * *

Dogma hesitated, but, finally, fetched his phone from his pocket. Nervously, he called Katsuya's number. It took two rings before Katsuya answered, and by then, Dogma was anxiously scratching his arm. "Hello?" Katsuya's voice came, and Dogma suppressed a relieved sigh.

"Hey Katsuya," he swallowed, "listen, do you have any test tomorrow? F-for school, I mean." There was a long moment of silence, and distantly, he could hear his own heart beating loudly. He was sure that Katsuya was shocked at him sounding so nervous, as he had never been like that before Yuugi… Or at least, _Dogma_ had never been like that.

"Hum… No." He could almost hear Katsuya frowning. "And – before you ask – yes, I'm sure."

"Oh," Dogma answered dully. He stopped his fidgeting, and glanced up to look at the sun's position; still afternoon. "I see." There was a beat of silence. Dogma considered just hanging up for a moment; and decided it was for the best. "See you," he said hurriedly, hung up, dropped his phone on the floor of his bedroom, and closed his eyes.

Yuugi had lied – to him, to Dogma. He had done it knowingly, in his face, with a smile and twinkling eyes. And he had believed him, even when he knew Yuugi, even when he knew that Yuugi would do anything for friendship – in order not to worry his friends. Dogma was such an idiot, such a fool. He was so naive, too naive; still too naive.

He opened one eye, and glanced at the only clock in the whole house. It was broken beyond repair, had been thrown against the wall numerous times (when he had still been unstable), and didn't even tell the right time; but it was better than nothing.

Considering that the _Slow Live Day_ took place at 18:00, and that it was around 17:30, he still had enough time to rush to the karaoke and save Yuugi from Souzouji's 'torture' – even though it was no torture for him, he was sure that a normal person like Yuugi would have troubles getting through it without consequences.

Of course, he could always let the whole thing to Atem's hands, but… he couldn't just stand there doing nothing, knowing that his _friend_ was suffering like that. Even if he was barely human, even if he had been twisted beyond repair, even if he was just a shadow of their former self, he still had morals – although chaotic and twisted morals. And, right now, his morals told him to hurry up and save his (beloved) friend.

(And he had been so happy too, so happy that fate had been thwarted, that he had been able to change it. He had believed that, since Souzouji was afraid of Dogma and knew that Yuugi was his protégé, Yuugi would never get into trouble. Now, it seemed so obvious, so obviously obvious, that he had forgotten the other victim, Hanasaki. He was sure it was because of Hanasaki, he was sure that Yuugi had taken Hanasaki's tickets – so kind and gentle and light – and—)

Dogma swallowed, stood up, and rushed to save his (partner).

(Fate couldn't be thwarted.)

* * *

"Penalty Game! Beat Festival!" Screaming came from the room. "S-somebody, make this booming noise stop!" The distraught cries continued. The only person at the karaoke's entrance, Karen, gulped and tried to ignore the voices coming from room 06. She knew that Souzouji was a regular, and it was known by the whole staff that he made a lot of noise, but this… They had only told her that his singing voice was loud, not that he enjoyed crying out like that.

...Was she supposed to go see what was happening?

Before she could do anything, someone entered the karaoke. It was a young, slim and beautiful… man, woman?

"Hello, miss. Could you tell me if a boy, who looks like he's thirteen, with starfish-like hair, and a golden puzzle around his neck, came in recently?" _He_ (male, definitely male) looked nervous, eyes shifting around and brows furrowed unconsciously. "Ah, um, I'm his friend, and—"

He didn't finish, as the door to room 06 opened. The boy he had been talking about came out. Another boy, glasses-boy, was at his side, leaning on the starfish-boy with blossoming bruises and broken glasses. Starfish-boy was saying something to, who she assumed was, Souzouji.

Karen turned back toward the blond boy, and barely suppressed a gasp of surprise. The poor boy seemed crestfallen, but there was also a hint of pure, unaltered rage that made his eyes darken visibly. She gulped and adverted her eyes, deciding that this didn't concern her.

Still, she couldn't help but listen – and steal some glances.

"Yuugi!" the crestfallen boy called, rushing to his… friend? He didn't pay a single glance toward the glasses-boy. "Are you alright? Did he—" He was cut off by the starfish-boy, Yuugi.

"I'm alright, Dogma." His voice was calm, even. He gazed at the blond boy – Dogma, she assumed – with dark red eyes that spoke of something Karen couldn't understand, would never understand. He looked at the boy leaning on him, and sent Dogma a meaningful look. "Could you help me get him to his house?"

Dogma briefly closed his eyes, and it looked like he was in immense pain. Finally, he opened them again, and nodded. His gaze remained on room 06 for a while, before he joined the Yuugi-boy and helped the glasses-boy. Just as they were about to cross the door, he glanced at Karen, offered a brief, pained smile, and nodded in… thanks, she guessed.

She hesitantly nodded back.

After a while, when she was sure they wouldn't come back, she went to the room 06. She hesitated, but, after making her decision, opened the door. Souzouji was there, rolled into a ball, and muttering things she couldn't understand.

Karen rushed to call an ambulance.

* * *

"Alright, there we go," Dogma whispered to himself, and breathed out, nervousness still making his body tense. He looked down at Yuugi – Atem, really – who was conversing with Sugoroku. It probably was about Yuugi's unusual lateness. Dogma almost laughed aloud; Sugoroku would have to get used to a lot more than just some lateness. Thinking about all the oncoming danger made Dogma frown.

He looked down at his own hands pensively. He still wasn't sure as to what he could possibly do to help – he couldn't just say something like ' _hey yo, so, forgot to tell you, but in fact, I know the future and all, and, so, wanted to tell you that, in the near future, you may die, or maybe not, cause, you know, it's destiny,_ ' once again, Dogma almost laughed aloud at the thought. Alright, so maybe this was a little too blunt, but the concept was the same: telling the truth.

Not that he would _ever_ tell the whole truth. No matter what, there would always be a part, a personal part, that he would never reveal.

"Dogma?" He snapped out of his thoughts, and looked beside him. _Atem, not Yuugi,_ he reminded himself. He made a small sound to show he had heard. "Are you alright?" Confusion must have showed on his face, because Atem continued. "You look… bothered."

"Oh," he whispered. "Oh, um, it's nothing," he tried not to hesitate, "Yuug'," but calling Atem by his (treasure's) name left a foul taste in his mouth. He breathed in sharply, about to continue, before he thought better of it. He sent one last regretful look to Atem(Yuugi)'s face, and forced a grin on his face. "Will you be alright?"

Atem frowned, but nodded.

"Um, sorry to leave you like that, but I really gotta go," an awful, horrible lie that made knots appear in his stomach, he didn't want to leave Yuugi alone, "so… I hope it doesn't bother you."

Atem seemed to hesitate, however very briefly. "No," he said finally. "You can go," he allowed, and, really, it felt like that, like Dogma was nothing but a peasant in front of the great pharaoh. Dogma hated it, but, still, he continued to grin.

"See you tomorrow, Yuug'!" he sent over his shoulder as he rushed out. He couldn't bear watching his (companion) being _possessed_ like that, as if he was nothing but a puppet.

Dogma felt sick.

(And he still had to take care of the aftermaths. Damn pharaoh and his carelessness.)

* * *

(1) It feels like this chapter is very, very empty. I knew since the beginning of the fanfiction that this one would be horrible, because there's, like, nothing, absolutely nothing to say. At least I managed to fit in Dogma's thoughts about the pharaoh we all love, Atem! So, yeah, doesn't like him very much at the moment, but that's only because he's possessing Yuugi.

(2) I have _no idea_ where that Outsider POV came from. It feels horrible, it is horrible, but I like it, so I'll just keep it for now. If, in the future, I decide to change it, don't be surprised.


End file.
